Chapter 23
23
T he throbbing in her head wasn’t going away. Then again, the pain meant she wasn’t dead at the bottom of the hill, so it had to count for something positive, Tansy decided.
If she could have thrown herself out of the car a couple of seconds before ZenBaby made impact instead of after, things would have been different. “Note to self. Next time, move faster.”
Please, God, let there be a next time for bad choices.
Her left leg throbbed in time with the pulse in her temple, but she’d already made the mistake of trying to adjust position once—nope. When she hit the ground and the ground had decided to hit back, something had definitely gone snap in her shin.
Now that the adrenaline rush was over, the numbness in her brain was helpful. It meant things didn’t hurt quite as much as they should. But the whole head lower than the rest of her body position meant she was beginning to see spots in front of her eyes.
Then suddenly, she saw the face of an angel. If angels looked like Ryan Zhao, one of the Heart Falls fire hall volunteers.
“This is a new one for you, Tans.” His hands moved rapidly, but his smile stayed firmly in place. Something clicked at her waistline, and he breathed a sigh of relief. “You’re attached to a lifeline now. If the cliff goes, we’ll swing a little, but you’re safe.”
“Excellent.” The word came out slightly slurred. Tansy’s tongue didn’t seem to fit in her mouth anymore. “How’s Jeffrey?”
“Better than you,” Ryan assured her, reaching for the spinal board dangling to his right. “This part will get a little awkward. Feel free to scream if you need to.”
“Can’t.” Tansy grit her teeth as Ryan slipped the board into position beside her. “Can’t scare Jake.”
Ryan chuckled. “Interesting he’s the one you’re worried about.”
“He loves me,” Tansy informed Ryan.
“So I hear. Brace yourself. Moving on three. Ready?”
Oh God, this was going to hurt. Tansy counted with Ryan and breathed out as he slid her onto the board. The scream behind her teeth stayed there from sheer willpower, a gritted growl escaping instead.
Sometime during the strapping in process, Tansy let the darkness wash over her.
The next thing she felt was coolness on her skin and the sound of gentle beeping in the background. A tentative inhale brought the scent of antiseptic and a marked ache in her ribs. “Gah.”
“Tansy?”
Fingers tightened on her hand. Tansy blinked to discover familiar blue eyes in a worried face hovering beside her. “It’s you.”
“Thank God you’re awake.” Jake cupped her face tenderly with one hand, clinging to her hand with the other. “Jeffrey’s safe.”
She’d been about to ask. “Good. That’s good. No, that’s wonderful.”
“It is. You, on the other hand? You’ve got a broken tibia. It was a clean break and set well. Other than that, how do you feel?”
Tansy took a moment to do a real assessment. Aches and pains danced over her body, her palms were scraped, and her lower left leg was definitely in a cast. She glanced around the hospital room, gaze hesitating on the mystery man who stood in the open doorway. His outfit clearly said cop, and his feet were braced wide and hands clasped in front of him. While he wasn’t staring, he was most definitely keeping an eye on her and Jake.
Then she couldn’t see the man anymore because Jake cupped her face in both hands and kissed her tenderly.
Screw the aches and pains. She was alive. Tansy kissed him back, curling her arms around his neck the best she could while hooked to an IV. Jake hugged her back so tightly Tansy had to pull hard for air. Did she care?
Not. One. Bit.
The hug eased slightly as Jake took a big breath and let it out slowly.
Tansy took a big breath as well and let it out, only she pursed her lips and blew in his face.
His lips twitched, and some of the fear in his expression lightened. “Mischief.”
“You know you love me.”
“I do.” His expression went serious. “You up for an important talk?”
“Yup.” Because once it was over, she could ask for more painkillers. Plus, the guy watching them from the doorway—it was creepy, to be honest.
Jake leaned back, speaking softly but clear enough to be heard by the man in the door. “I called in a few favours. Jackson Murray is a friend, and he’s taking point on the investigation. You remember what happened?”
“Yeah.” Tansy hesitated, searching her memories. “Did I hear Aiden right? Melissa didn’t make it?”
His expression went grim again. “Yeah. And I can’t say much more because Jackson needs to ask you official questions, but the fact Melissa died while in your SUV is messed up.”
Tansy shivered. That could have been her?—
“ Shhhh .” Jake’s strong arms curled around her again. “You’re alive. You’re safe.”
“Jeffrey is safe, too.” Tansy nodded against Jake’s chest. It still didn’t feel possible, but she would cling to all the good she could. “Investigation? Am I a suspect in her death?”
“No. Not really. But he needs to talk to you.” Jake tipped his head toward the door. “Okay if he comes in?”
She would have liked a ton more time to talk first, but that probably wasn’t an option. “I guess.”
Jake squeezed her hand as he rose. “Don’t worry. Jackson is on our side. It’ll be okay.”
Jackson was a dark-haired white man with silver at his temples and a pair of wire-framed glasses he pushed up immediately after shaking Tansy’s hand. “Sorry for having to do this right away, but the sooner we get the info in, the better.”
“Okay.” Tansy sat up straighter. “What do you need to know?”
“Petra found your phone, so we found the message Melissa sent you.” Jackson took out a notebook and pen. “Why did Melissa ask if you wanted Jeffrey?”
God, what was the right answer? How much of the truth had Jake told his friend? Tansy deliberately didn’t look at Jake as she mentally raced through options of what to say.
In the end, she went with a simple truth. “I wanted Jeffrey to have a better life than Melissa was giving him. Both Jake and I wanted that, and Melissa knew it.”
Jackson made a couple of notes. “What happened when you got to the lookout?”
Explaining about the trunk incident, and her shitty SUV brakes, and the mad scramble to get out of the car took more energy than expected, and in the end, Tansy felt like day old celery as she leaned on her pillows and sipped the water Jake handed her.
Jackson nodded slowly a few times as he finished his notes. He glanced between Tansy and Jake then dipped his chin. “I got enough. You get a copy of that paperwork we talked about in as soon as possible, Jake, and that’ll cover all the bases.”
“We appreciate it,” Jake offered his hand as the man stood.
Jackson shook it firmly then smiled gently at Tansy. “You’re a lucky woman. Second chance at life and all that.”
“Never a dull day,” Tansy quipped back.
The door closed, and Jake returned to her side. “Sorry I couldn’t warn you ahead of time. You did great.”
“Does he know all the bullshit Melissa put you through?” Tansy asked quietly.
“Sort of?” Jake offered. “Jackson is one of the guys I asked to track Melissa when she vanished. So he knew things weren’t great—how she was treating Jeffrey.”
Tansy’s brain couldn’t line up everything neatly, but she did remember one part. “What paperwork?”
Jake took another deep breath. “Remember when Melissa wanted to add me to Jeffrey’s birth certificate? During the apartment purge after she left, Declan found the paperwork she’d already signed in the garbage. He kept it. I’ve signed it, and Petra’s loaded a copy into the database. I’m officially listed as Jeffrey’s dad on paper, which means no one can take him away from us.”
A sudden spark flared in Tansy’s chest, and she gasped at the sensation. It was painful and perfect, and the next second, tears burst free like a dam had exploded, and there was nothing she could do to stop them.
“Oh God, Tansy . What’s wrong?” Jake brushed his hands over her as if searching for a new wound. “Do I need to call the doctor?”
“No. I’m happy,” Tansy gasped out between sobs. “So happy.”
They’d held onto hope for so long that having an answer that meant Jeffrey was safe seemed unreal.
She let herself cry it out, leaning into Jake’s arms. Letting the sadness of her own five-year-old self fall away and find a solid footing with High Water and all it stood for.
A solid footing with Jake by her side.
When she eased away, he didn’t move. Just stayed close, offering his support. “Thanks for being here,” she whispered.
“There’s nowhere else I want to be,” Jake offered quietly. “I’m not the only one, by the way. Your entire family stuck around for hours until I convinced them to head home.”
She snorted. “How did you do that?”
“Bribery,” he admitted. “We’re expected at your parents for dinner as soon as you feel up for it. Then a visit with Ivy and Walker followed by Rose and Chance.” His grin widened. “Plus, it appears your sister Fern has big news she wants to share with you in person.”
“Really?” Tansy thought back to her sister’s odd behavior at the auction. “Okay. So we’re booked for the next week?”
“Definitely.”
Tansy hesitated. Jake had said everything was okay, but fear lingered like an ache in her soul. “Where’s Jeffrey?”
Jake tenderly brushed a final tear off her cheek with his thumb. “He’s at High Water with the family. We didn’t know how long you’d be out after the operation to set your leg.” He made a face. “Plus, I didn’t really want him around for the police investigation. Jackson is rock solid, but just in case?—”
“No,” Tansy said quickly. “I’m glad Jeffrey’s not here. Although I’d love to see him. He was so brave, Jake. So scared, but so brave.”
“He’s a brave little boy. You’ll have to wait until tomorrow to tell him that, though, because it’s late. It’s already after visiting hours, and they’ve got him settled down at the house.” Jake indicated the clock on the wall. “You missed supper.”
“Not hungry.” She hesitated. “I’m sorry Melissa’s dead. I never wanted that.”
“None of us did,” Jake said softly. He linked their hands together and stared at the connection for the longest time before lifting his gaze to hers. “Melissa made choices, Tansy. Same as you and me. Every step of the way, we had to decide how we’d act and react to the hand we’d been dealt in life. Somewhere along the line, she broke and took a wrong turn. That’s on her. All we can do now is try to make a difference in the life she left behind.”
“Jeffrey.”
He nodded. “Jeffrey.”
A knock on the door sounded an instant before a nurse paced in. “Time for your meds,” the young man offered cheerily. “It’s better to stay ahead of the pain so you get some rest tonight.”
“Okay.” Tansy watched as he administered the dose into the IV tube beside the bed then quietly left. She turned to Jake, “Tomorrow I go home, though.”
“Absolutely,” he agreed.
Home. Which was a place, but more than anything, it was a feeling. It was the people in her world who meant everything to her.
It was love.
How did she tell him that? How did she make it clear that this thing inside her, for him, and for Jeffrey, was big and huge and shiny, even in the sadness of loss, and the messed up cliff, and trunks with glowing pull handles and?—
“Those are good drugs.” Tansy blinked hard, the floaty sensation in her brain twisting in circles even as she chased an important idea. “Home is love. You and me. And Jeffie. And the guys. And gals—Sydney too. She says guys is unisex, so all of us.”
Jake’s lips twitched. “You’re getting high.”
“High on love,” Tansy agreed. “We’re almost a family.”
Wait.
That wasn’t what she wanted to say. She needed for him to know they were a family in all the ways that mattered.
Only Jake had risen to his feet to press a kiss to her forehead. “ Shhh . Go to sleep. I’ll be right here when you wake, bright and early.”
“Marry.” Tansy’s tongue twisted to a stop before she could get it all out.
“Merry and bright, yes,” Jake parried back. “My unstoppable Tansy.”
Dammit. That was nice, but it wasn’t what she meant. Fighting to get the words right through the furry blanket on her brain wasn’t happening.
She’d have to ask him in the morning. Or as soon as she had her feet under her. Cast and all.
They were meant to be together.